Exclusive | Hrithik Roshan’s fitness trainer Kris Gethin on healthy living and finding your passion

Actor Hrithik Roshan needs no introduction, we all have grown up adoring the Bollywood actor for his fitness regime and dance moves. He stands tall as an example of how important a role fitness plays in one's life. But what keeps him that fit and in shape is discipline and consistency.

We, at Edugraph, caught hold of the celebrity fitness trainer, athlete and bodybuilder, Kris Gethin - the man behind Hrithik Roshan’s physique for his upcoming movie ‘Fighter’. As he speaks about his journey from motocross to fitness and entrepreneurship along with some tips for the fitness enthusiasts.

What made you get into fitness?

K: I got into fitness kind of by accident, pun intended. I used to race Motorcross for about 10 to 11 years and I suffered a few injuries. Since I was participating in such an extreme sport, I had to see several sports specialists and doctors, chiropractors, massage therapists, and osteopaths, to help alleviate the injuries I had over the years. It wasn't until I went for physiotherapy, where I had to do resistance training, that I was free of the pain that I was dealing with. This encouraged me to study a bit more about it, and I started to realise I was being able to retain the content a lot better than I did in school. That's when I decided to go and study health, fitness and sports therapy for three years in college. I really enjoyed the feeling I got from it and how it got me to overcome a lot of physical and mental pain that was associated with it.

What part of the fitness industry do you like the most and why?

K: I love just seeing how it changes people. Sometimes it doesn't just change people's lives, it saves their lives too. If they are going through a divorce or they have just gone through some sort of injury or a loss and they don't know what to do. When they actually start taking better care of themselves with the food that they eat and not only feeding themselves physically but also mentally. The changes you see in people are just unbelievable and I get a lot of satisfaction from that. I guess it gives me a purpose as well seeing that change. That's what I really like about the industry, the change that you see in people from it.

How inspired do you think people of this generation are?

K: It is difficult because you have various things out there that kind of justify people’s complacency, like ordering food from your phone, which makes us lazy. We take the escalators or the lifts instead of the stairs and then you have the body-positive movement that justifies that people should be okay with being overweight or obese. I am not here to body shame people but it is not healthy.

Everyone should avoid comparing themselves to their favourite stars on social media and instead focus on becoming healthier versions of themselves, which in this generation is very difficult. We are seeing more westernised culture coming into countries like India with fast food chains.

How important is a healthy diet and nutrition and the role it plays on fitness?

K: It is everything. You are what you eat. If you are eating unhealthy food you probably gonna feel bad. If you put real bad fuel source into a car and you are not servicing it, it will run out, it won't perform as it should and it and so is diet. A healthy diet helps to increase our health span, longevity provides us with energy and makes us more focused. It is absolutely everything. It should be a staple for everyone, like a protocol. Unfortunately, people often look for a quick dopamine fix and choose fast food instead of functional food, this is where they go wrong.

What made you get into entrepreneurship and bodybuilding

I saw a void in the industry during the time I spent in India. I noticed there was a requirement for gyms with decent infrastructure where personal trainers were respected and treated as professionals. However, they also need to be educated in a way that they can be authoritative figures and be confident. So that's when my business partner Jag Chima and I decided to open some gyms here. We believed in treating gyms like academies where there is constant education for trainers as well as for members.

I also saw a demand where people wanted to be trained and sought guidance from professionals. That is when I decided to offer online services to people all around the world.

How should fitness enthusiasts who share the same dream go about it?

For people out there who want to become an entrepreneur, it has to be something they have a passion for and where it doesn't feel like work. What I do here doesn’t feel like work even though it can be stressful sometimes, because I put my heart and soul into it. This helps me give my best to clients. It is something that I love and enjoy. I feel very lucky that I have this platform and can amplify my ideas out there. Going for something that makes you feel good and make you believe you can leave a legacy, is a good start.

You have been accredited widely as the man behind Hrithik Roshan’s physique - what was the learning aspect you think young fitness enthusiasts should follow?

K: With Hrithik in particular, I would say what young people should do is not look at Hrithik and say, oh well it's easy for him. Because that's what everybody does. People say that about me and assume that's what I do for a living so it must be easy. It's not easy, I work 12 to 16 hours a day. But, for somebody like Hrithik Roshan, I helped him at one stage where he did not take a single day off from work for seven months!

There were some 16-hour days, working throughout the night. Just because he is a celebrity doesn't mean he doesn't put his heart and soul into everything that he does. If you talk about entrepreneurship, he runs HRX, he has invested in Cultfit, and he works ever so hard in that. He has a very healthy relationship with his entire family, his parents, and his kids and he still never makes an excuse when it comes to eating his 6 meals, going to bed by 9:30-10:00 at night, waking up early, and making sure he is drinking 6-7 litres of water regularly.

So don't justify someone else’s success as your excuse to not do the same or better. Use it as an inspiration to try to do better than the person you are looking up to. You’ve got two eyes, legs, and arms there is no reason why you can't do it either. It all comes down to how badly you want it. If you want it, you will work weekends and late nights, and do whatever it takes to achieve it.

Any advice for young people who look forward to getting into bodybuilding?

K: Take your time and have patience. Some young people might see a video of their favourite Instagram influencer lifting 500 pounds or with shredded abs and huge biceps, and want it all today. The attention span of a lot of youngsters is very short and they want immediate results. But, that will only lead to disappointments and injuries. So I would say take expert advice but be very patient. The top athletes you see online probably took at least 3 years to get that physique. Hence, have patience but have consistency. We can all be students of learning but that won't do anything without being a student of application as well.

Prioritize your health first. Forget the abs, shoulders, and biceps. They will come if you prioritize your health. You don't want to get to the age of 60 or 70 and regret what you did in your earlier years.